Welcome to the first installment of WINE CRUSH,
a bi-monthly-ish newsletter.
This space is for the viticulture geeks, cellar rats and glass swirlers.
Read on as Jason Bise and Kelly McGrath share their thoughts on seasonal wine trends, ancient grapes, and mystical producers.
THE CASE FOR MORE and BETTER GAMAY!
by Jason Bise
In between the limestone of the Cote d’Or where Pinot Noir thrives and the schist and gneiss sprouting the Syrahs of the Cote Rotie, is a patch of granite and clay where the Gamay grape thrives. Beaujolais. It might be the most mis-understood and, sadly, maligned region in France, but we hope to help you get a better understanding of both the wines and the incredible value they offer.
In America Beaujolais has been mostly relegated to the celebration of Beaujolais Nouveau day and the fervor fades as fast as the Thanksgiving Holiday passes us by. The Beaujolais Nouveau day started as a race to see who could get the wine picked, fermented, bottled and released first. It is now a set release day on the third Thursday of November, this year on the 18th, where the world gets to try the new wines of the current vintage. The aging only took place in the short 2-3 week span the wine spent crossing the ocean. One of the secrets of Nouveau is the carbonic maceration used to ferment the grapes. The Gamay grapes are put in a tank with carbon dioxide and they begin their fermentation from the inside out. This helps to soften the tannins and produces an abundance of fresh cherry and strawberry aromatics. As fresh and lively as it is, sometimes this is the only impression people have of the wines of Beaujolais.
There is so much more! Beaujolais is divided into three geographic areas, overlapping each other. At the top of the scale, and most Northerly are the Cru Beujolais. These are 10 villages that can use their name specifically on the label as in Morgon, Brouilly and the Cote-de-Brouilly. The next level is Beaujolais-Villages where granite is more populous than the clay, but the hills are not as steep and the yields are a little higher. Finally in the southern-most stretches of the Beaujolais the mountains give way to slops of more alluvial soil producing more rounded, but less precise wines. At the Locke Store we implore you to give Beaujolais a second (or third or fourth) look and see why this region holds some of the best value red wines in all of France. We have been tasting and collecting a few other wines from the region to show you how complex and interesting this grape can be in the right hands.
Here is a selection of Beaujolais spanning from
the Region to Villages to Cru bottlings.
From $20-$50 you can have the best wines of the region, and most will reward you with short 5-10 years of additional cellar aging, but there is no need to wait as these wines are always accessible.
Manoir du Carra Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau 2021 $11.95
The Gamay grapes that go into Beaujolais Nouveau are handpicked, as are all the grapes in the Beaujolais. Beaujolais & Champagne are the only vineyards where hand harvesting is mandatory. The Beaujolais Villages Nouveau is deeper red, with flavors reminiscent of strawberries and roses, plus a mineral component. Fragrant and medium bodied; refreshing with a tart finish. Beaujolais Villages Nouveau is meant to be consumed young, within 5-7 months
Domain du Cret de Bine ‘Bio-Addict’ Beaujolais 2020 $22.95
Domaine du Crêt de Bine challenges the hierarchical supposition that a wine from southern Beaujolais cannot achieve the same intensity and complexity as wines from the Crus Beaujolais. Framed biodynamically and vinified in traditional beaujolais method, 12 day fermentation duration with indigenous yeasts by “pied de cuve”. A bowl full of fresh cut strawberries with spicy raspberry jam on the side. A dense middle and a long fresh mineral finish.
Richard Rottiers ‘La Sambinerie’ Beaujolais-Villages 2020 $22.95
Richard took over 8 acres of vines in 2007 and converted to full organic farming in 2012. La Sambinerie is a granitic plot of estate vines, right next to the Moulin a Vent appellation. The vinification is short, between 7 and 9 days of semi-carbonic maceration in concrete tanks. Aging in wooden vats and barrels for 6 months to smooth tannins Dense garnet in color with confiture cherries spread on pain-grillé. Ripe, lean and fresh through the long, elegant finish.
Nicolas Chemarin ‘Saburin’ Brouilly 2020 $23.95
Nicolas is the fourth generation to farm the family property and the only male of his generation to stay in the village, a fact that has earned him the nickname “Petit Grobis” a local term of endearment having to do with small hollows in trees used by owls. Nicolas farms 13 acres in the village of Marchampt, Brouilly, Regnié and Morgon. The Saburin vineyard is one of the nine “lieu-dits” in Brouilly. It is located on the slopes of a south facing hill at 1200 feet on very steep pink granite slopes. The wine is raspberries and herbal tea with a bright and earthy midpalate and fresh strawberries on the finish.
Alex Foillard Côte-de-Brouilly 2019 $44.95
Kermit Lynch introduced U.S. wine drinkers to four disciples of Jules Chauvet, the Beaujolais vigneron who experimented in making “natural” wines with unparalleled success. One of these followers was Jean Foillard, a soft-spoken perfectionist who has arguably become the Beaujolais’s most talented vigneron working today. Now, Jean’s son Alex has joined the ranks of the region’s most gifted—and well-trained—producers. Alex plays with the sometimes mind-bending and rule-defying nature of the special terroirs here. Black raspberry aromas and a super fresh mineral core that runs straight through the long and finely tannic finish.
Domaine du Pavillon de Chavannes Côte de Brouilly $27.95
Mont Brouilly rises to a height of 1,587 feet all by its lonesome, an old volcanic thumb sticking out of a plain. For a generation now Pavillon de Chavannes has been managed by Paul and Betty Jambon. The Cuvée had always come from 12 acres of the domaine’s best vines. This is a very old school Beaujolais in the best sense: beautiful garnet color, beguiling aromatics, and a burst of refreshment in the mouth—and that burst is a savory, mineral, toothsome thing because of the domaine’s high elevations and because of Brouilly’s meager volcanic soils. Some crus emphasize soil notes, others give fruit, but only good Côte de Brouilly gives stone in the flavor.
Château Thivin Côte de-Brouilly, Beaujolais, France $33.95
It is no surprise that Château Thivin is the benchmark domaine of the Côte de Brouilly; everything about it is exceptional. Built in the fifteenth century on an ancient volcano which juts out steeply into the valley below, Thivin is the oldest estate on Mont Brouilly. The parcels are predominantly south-facing and are planted entirely with Gamay vines that average 50 years of age. On a slope with a grade of 48% and crumbly surface, implementing these techniques is essential to safeguard the soil from erosion, but it isn’t easy! Aromas of crushed cherries and red raspberries come charging out of the glass. Pure bottled crushed fruit A beautiful and delicate acidity on the palate leads to a long and elegant finish carrying you back to those berries again, and repeat.
Jean-Paul & Charly Thévenet Morgon ‘Vielles Vignes’ 2020 $41.95
Jean-Paul has helmed his estate since taking over for his father in 2008. He still farms old vines biodynamically, he still refuses any amount of chaptalization or filtering. In comparison to other Gang of Four members, his point of difference comes in long, slow fermentations in cement, giving his wines deeper color, plush supple tannin, and restrained fruit character, followed by 6-8 months in old Burgundy barrels to further broaden the shoulders Vibrant and effusive strawberry and blackberry aromas start to entice you into the woods where the palate shifts to bramble. It has a pleasant cocoa powder dusting of tannin and is already hinting at the secondary aromas of dried herbs and preserved strawberries that the years ahead will open.